Inflation is finally coming down, but Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that the U.S. economy is not out of the woods yet.
In a question-and-answer session at the Economic Club of Washington, DC, the nation's top banker said that he expects the process to take some time.
“The disinflationary process, the process of getting inflation down, has begun and it’s begun in the goods sector, which is about a quarter of our economy,” he said. “But it has a long way to go. These are the very early stages.”
The comments track with Powell's previous statements that goods inflation is only part of the run-up in prices, and that services are now one of the biggest drivers of inflation.
Despite Powell sticking to his guns that inflation could be here for a while, stocks got a bump on Tuesday following the comments. Many investors appear to be holding out hope that the Fed will soon pull back on rate hikes, which would give equity markets some room to breathe.
Powell, for his part, stressed that it will likely take another full year for inflation to be brought under control. “We expect 2023 to be a year of significant declines in inflation. It’s actually our job to make sure that that’s the case,” he said.
Still, the Fed has already started moderating its stance. Earlier this month, the Fed announced a 25-basis-point hike, down from 50 basis points enacted at its previous meeting.
The U.S. economy is being held up in part by the AI boom, but that boom could still lead to broader prosperity or inequality, says a Nobel Prize winner.
Foundation Robotics co-founder Michael LeBlanc explains how humanoid robots are moving from the lab to military and industrial missions and what comes next.
Jeff Burnstein, President of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), discusses humanoid robots, AI, smart manufacturing, and the future of U.S. industry.
Should kids be banned from social media? Nick Lichtenberg of Fortune breaks down the global push to restrict under-16 users and what it means for Big Tech.
Miso Robotics CEO Rich Hull discusses Flippy Fry Station, the future of AI-powered restaurant automation and how acquiring Zume's IP could reshape food robotics
After two years of AI-fueled spending, Wall Street is asking what's next. Gil Luria breaks down monetization, valuations, winners, losers, and AI's future.
